Holidays

The Committee of Good Will - Olga Havel Foundation strives for integration of children and adults at risk of social exclusion into society. One way to help children dependent on the institutional care is to enable them to spend their free time out of the institutions. The OHF has been realizing the Holidays project for children from children's homes since 1990. Within this project the OHF arranges foreign seaside stays. In the years 1990 - 2015, more than 8,500 children spent holidays abroad in this way.

The main partner of the project is the Property, Administrative and Delimitation Union of Trade Unions in Prague.

Baška Polje

We were all so excited about the holidays in Croatia, especially because of the sea. Most of us have not been at the seaside before, we only saw it in movies and pictures. The journey was very long, we drove through four countries: the Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia. We travelled by bus with nice and friendly drivers, other passengers joined us in Železný Brod and Prague. We left at 10 am from our children's home and arrived around 7 am next day to the recreation area Alem in Croatia. We were all very tired but impatient to finally touch the sea! The morning sea was cold and salty but indescribably beautiful.

Ljubica was already waiting for us, she showed us around and explained everything in detail, answered all our questions, helped us as much as she could, and we thank her so much for that! We lived in apartment Vis, every room had its own terrace and bathroom. We were close to the sea and had a beautiful view from the balcony, from which we could watch illuminated boats at night. We saw little fish and sea urchins, heard gulls giggle, searched for seashells and shells of marine snails. We visited all the places in town and its neighbourhood within walking distance and spent all our pocket money on ice cream, jewellery, and gifts.

Our fellow travellers came out to be amazing people; they took care of us, gave us advice and helped us with everything we needed. They even collected seashells for us when they went diving and we kept them as souvenirs. Hopefully, we did not make them mad, and they will have only nice memories of us as well.

I need to say that we were very excited about the holiday, we enjoyed Croatia until the last moment, and we thank so much to the Olga Havel Foundation for providing us with this opportunity.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Children and aunts from the children's home in Lipová u Šluknova

Dear Foundation,
let me thank you once again for the opportunity to visit Croatia with our children. Everything was perfect, even the weather got better and we could enjoy the sun and warm sea.

With regards,
Miroslav Kouřil
Head of the children's home in Boršov nad Vltavou

„We wish that the right for dignified life is also enjoyed by those who live with handicap or mental illness, abandoned and old people, those who have a different skin colour or a different way of life, those in poverty or attacked by a malignant disease.“
Olga Havel